Belfast Castle
Belfast Castle | |
---|---|
country house | |
Location | The lower slopes of Cave Hill on the County Antrim side of Belfast |
Coordinates | 54°38′34″N 5°56′32″W / 54.6428°N 5.9422°W |
Built | Late 1860s |
Architect | Probably W.H. Lynn or John Lanyon |
Architectural style(s) | Victorian Scots Baronial |
Owner | Belfast City Council |
Listed Building – Grade A | |
Reference no. | HB26/51/001A |
Belfast Castle (Irish: Caisleán Bhéal Feirste[2][3]) is a mansion located in Cave Hill Country Park in Belfast, Northern Ireland, in a prominent position 400 feet (120 m) above sea level. Its location provides unobstructed views over the City of Belfast and Belfast Lough.[3][4][5] There have been several different structures called "Belfast Castle" over the centuries, located on different sites.[6] The current "castle" is a Victorian structure, built between 1867 and 1870 on the slopes of Cave Hill, and is Grade A listed.[7] The main entrance into the Belfast Castle Demesne is now where Innisfayle Park meets Downview Park West, just off the Antrim Road (part of the A6). The original main entrance into the current demesne was formerly on the Antrim Road itself, where Strathmore Park now meets the Antrim Road.[8]
History
Medieval and Early Modern Castle
There have been several different structures called "Belfast Castle" over the centuries; not all of these structures have been on the same site.
By 1333, a small settlement is thought to have developed around the castle at Belfast.[9][14] This original "Belfast Castle", located on what later became the County Antrim side of the River Lagan, was probably in the area now bounded by Donegall Place, Castle Place, Cornmarket, and Castle Lane in the centre of what is now Belfast City Centre.[6][10][15] Although originally built in either the late twelfth-century or the early thirteenth-century, this castle was "rebuilt" on several occasions between the 1220s and the 1550s, possibly being "rebuilt" on the same site or on an adjacent site.[6][9] This original, medieval castle was almost certainly on, or very near, the same site as the much later "Plantation-era" castle developed for Lord Chichester.[6][15][10]
This original High Medieval, Late Medieval and Early Modern castle site was on the southern bank of the River Farset (which now flows beneath High Street), being located on a sliver of land that was bounded by the Farset to the north and the River Owenvara (Blackstaff River) to the south.[15][16] Both the River Farset and the River Owenvara (Irish: Abhainn Bheara, meaning "River of the Staff", usually known nowadays in English as the Blackstaff River[17]) emptied into the River Lagan just to the east of this castle site.
The medieval Belfast Castle was eventually seized by a branch of the powerful Uí Néill (
The castle was briefly taken in 1476 by Éinri mac Eoghain Ó Néill (known in
In the early sixteenth-century, Belfast Castle was seized on three different occasions by two senior-ranking members of the
Belfast Castle was briefly seized by
The
Sir John Chichester, who had been appointed as Governor of Carrickfergus Castle, soon fell out with the previously neutral MacDonnells of the Glens. In a battle fought in November 1597 against the MacDonnells at Altfrackyn (also known as Aldfreck), a townland just north of Ballycarry, the English were defeated, with 180 of their soldiers being killed.[28][29][30][31][32] Chichester was killed by the MacDonnells during or immediately after this battle, possibly by being beheaded.[28][29][30][33] Sir John Chichester was the fifth son of Sir John Chichester of North Devon, and he was the younger brother of The 1st Baron Chichester.[34]
Clandeboye Massacre
In October 1574, during the
Plantation Castle
By 1603, Belfast Castle, which was probably a
Sir Arthur Chichester was also "granted" a vast estate in
When the head of the Chichester family was advanced in the
Sir Arthur Chichester, one of the main architects of the Plantation of Ulster, had Belfast Castle largely rebuilt in the early 1610s, mainly in brick.[55][56] It is almost certain that Chichester had his "Plantation" castle built on the site of the Gaelic Uí Néill towerhouse.[6] Chichester may even have incorporated parts of the Uí Néill structure into his new castle.[6] However, when in Ulster, Lord Chichester, as he later became, usually resided at Joymount House in nearby Carrickfergus rather than at the "Plantation-era" Belfast Castle.[55][57][58] Lord Chichester had only one child with his wife, a son, who died in infancy. Thus, upon his own death in February 1625, Arthur, Lord Chichester, was succeeded in his estates and properties (but not in the peerage) by his younger brother Edward (1568-1648), who was created The 1st Viscount Chichester later in that same year. The Chichester family (later also known as the Donegall family) were to own the town of Belfast from around 1603 up until the early 1850s, when their Belfast estate was largely broken up and sold off.[59][60]
On the 24 April 1708, the "Plantation-era" Belfast Castle, which had been built for
Donegall House and Ormeau House
When
Lord Donegall thus had to find an alternative residence for himself and his family. He settled at what became known as Donegall House, a large terraced house on the corner of what is now Donegall Place and Donegall Square North, only a few hundred yards from the original site of Belfast Castle, right in the centre of the town of Belfast[66][67] (it did not officially become a city until November 1888[68][69][70]). The 2nd Marquess of Donegall became the first head of his family in almost a century to actually live in Belfast. Since 1708, the Earls and, later, Marquesses of Donegall had mainly lived over in Great Britain, usually living in London.[64]
The 2nd Marquess of Donegall also maintained a country residence called Ormeau Cottage on the Ormeau
Lord Donegall sold off Donegall House in the centre of Belfast in the early 1820s, establishing his main residence at Ormeau House thereafter. Donegall House was converted into being The Royal Hotel in 1824.[73] Ormeau House, where The 2nd Marquess of Donegall died in October 1844,[74] was eventually demolished in the late 1860s.[75][76]
Victorian Castle
It was The 3rd Marquess of Donegall who finally sold off almost all of his family's Belfast estate in the 1850s.[60][77] This left, of the "Belfast estate", only the Ormeau Demesne and most of Cave Hill in the ownership of Lord Donegall. Curiously, it was only when he no longer owned Belfast that Lord Donegall became interested in actually living there.[78] He decided to build what has been described as a new "princely mansion"[1] for himself in the 1860s on what was then the northern edge of Belfast,[1][75] just over a decade after the Great Famine had ended.[79][80] This new residence was called Belfast Castle, in a nod to family history, even though it was built on a completely different site, and in a completely different area, from the original castle site, which had been located right in the centre of Belfast.[6][15][16] By the 1860s, nothing remained above ground of the earlier "Belfast Castles".
The new,
The new Belfast Castle was built on what had been the Donegall family's
Construction cost well over the
As a young man, Lord Shaftesbury spent much of his time at Belfast Castle, often living there when he was not in London. He and his wife, Constance, Countess of Shaftesbury (1875-1957), were also very involved with charitable causes in Belfast, often holding events in the grounds of Belfast Castle in order to raise money for local charities.[89][90] It was Lord Shaftesbury who had the Baroque stone staircase added to the garden façade of the castle in 1894.[91] The architect of this elaborate, serpentine outdoor staircase is unknown.[91]
The vast
In his later years, Lord Shaftesbury spent less and less time at Belfast Castle,
Belfast Castle and Demesne since 1934
In the years after it was given to the city, there was some debate about what Belfast Castle should be used for. The publicity manager at the time felt that the castle should either be re-purposed into a tea and dance room, or perhaps a museum and art gallery with refreshment rooms.
The castle was just the beginning. The publicity manager also made plans for the grounds and demesne to include an open-air theatre, clay pigeon shooting, archery, tennis courts, bowling greens, squash courts, and mini golf. With such an ambitious project, a sub-committee estimated that the minimum possible cost would be £160,000 before considering the cost of employing grounds keepers and the cost of restoring the building.
After the
Since 1945, the castle has been a popular venue for weddings, afternoon teas, and other such events.[58]
Chapel of the Resurrection
The Chapel of the Resurrection was also built for
It seems that this small chapel was converted in 1891 into being a family chapel for regular worship, while also remaining as a family mausoleum.As with Belfast Castle itself, there is some debate over who actually designed the Chapel of the Resurrection. The designs for the chapel came out of the office of Lanyon, Lynn and Lanyon. Some architectural historians believe that the chapel, like the castle, was designed by either W.H. Lynn or John Lanyon.[87][102]
Harriet,
The Chapel of the Resurrection, like Belfast Castle and the rest of its surrounding demesne, was inherited by the Shaftesbury family in October 1883.
In the aftermath of the
Having been derelict for almost fifty years,[8][104][106] the chapel was eventually converted into luxury flats, with work being completed in 2020. Now called The Chapel, the building is part of a new housing development called Donegall Park Gardens, just off Innisfayle Park.[107][108][109][110]
Main Gate Lodge
The Gate Lodge at what was formerly the main entrance into the Belfast Castle
The lodge was built in uncoursed squared quarry-faced
Location
Belfast Castle is located 400 feet (121.92 metres) above sea level on Cave Hill, overlooking Belfast in County Antrim in the east of Ulster.[58]
Facilities
Belfast Castle is open to the public daily with a visitor centre, antique shop, Millennium Herb Garden, restaurant, and a playground.[5] Visitors can see a bedroom, set up in the style of the 1920s, so visitors can see a "snapshot in time" of what the castle looked like at the end of its life as a private residence.[58] The Cavehill Visitor Centre is located inside the castle.[3][5]
While it is open to the public daily, reservations can be made for a private room to host weddings, business meetings, and parties.[58]
Structure
Since the construction of the current Belfast Castle in the late 1860s, its
One of the castle's most iconic features is the winding stone staircase on the garden façade, whose greyish-brown colour stands out against the burnt sienna sandstone and brick red detail.[58] This serpentine outdoor staircase was installed for The 9th Earl of Shaftesbury in 1894.[91]
As in the twentieth-century, many of the rooms have been turned into public tea rooms or are available to be reserved for private functions.[5][114]
Restoration
Belfast Castle was closed in 1978 for a restoration and refurbishing effort. The architecture partnership of Hewitt and Haslam oversaw and carried out the over £2 million project, with the castle and demesne reopening on Armistice Day, 11 November 1988. Since then, it has once again become a popular spot for weddings and other celebrations as well as for business meetings.[4]
Another example of events held at the castle was the 2015 Belfast Castle Hospice Walk, held by the Northern Ireland Hospice to benefit local charities and those living with terminal illnesses.[115]
The castle underwent another round of refurbishment in May 2003.
Notes
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- ^ a b c d "Belfast Castle Estate - Belfast". Discover Northern Ireland. Retrieved 10 July 2023.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p "Belfast: The hidden castles under the city's shops". BBC News. 28 August 2022. Retrieved 10 July 2023.
- ^ "Historic Building Details - Belfast Castle". The Department for Communities. Retrieved 4 February 2024.
- ^ a b c d e Culture Northern Ireland: The Buildings of the Belfast Castle Estate - The Chapel of the Resurrection and The Gate Lodges. https://www.culturenorthernireland.org/features/heritage/buildings-belfast-castle-estate Archived 2020-12-02 at the Wayback Machine
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- ^ a b c d Royle 2007, map 5.
- ^ a b Gillespie & Royle 2003, pp. 2–3.
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- ^ a b c Rachel Tracey and Audrey Horning, "Ulster plantation towns: an archaeology of rhetoric and reality" in Brendan Scott (Editor), Society and Administration in Ulster's Plantation Towns, p. 17. Four Courts Press, Dublin, 2019.
- ^ a b Philip Robinson, Irish Historic Towns Atlas Number 2: Carrickfergus, p. 2. Royal Irish Academy, Dublin, 1986.
- ^ Tom McNeill, "County Down in the Later Middle Ages" in Lindsay Proudfoot (Editor), Down: History and Society, p. 117. Geography Publications, Dublin, 1997.
- ^ Bardon 2001, p. 67.
- ^ Tom McNeill, "County Down in the Later Middle Ages" in Lindsay Proudfoot (Editor), Down: History and Society, p. 119. Geography Publications, Dublin, 1997.
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- ^ Placenamesni.org: Aldfreck, County Antrim. http://www.placenamesni.org/resultdetails.php?entry=17038 Archived 2021-05-06 at the Wayback Machine
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- ^ a b Culture Northern Ireland: The Chichester Family. https://www.culturenorthernireland.org/features/heritage/chichester-family Archived 2021-03-03 at the Wayback Machine
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- ^ a b c d e Bardon 2012, p. 3.
- ^ a b c Bardon 1983, p. 7.
- ^ Bardon 2001, p. 83.
- ^ Patrick McKay, "Leabhar Cloinne Aodha Buidhe: Bardic Poetry of the Ó Néills of Clandeboy" in John McGurk (Editor), Dúiche Néill - Journal of the O Neill Country Historical Society: Number 17 (2008), p. 139. The O Neill Country Historical Society, Dungannon, 2008 (printed by R. & S. Printers, Monaghan).
- ^ Gillian Boyd and Fred Heatley, Belfast: Paintings and Stories from the City, p. 75. Cottage Publications, Donaghadee, County Down, 1998.
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- ^ R.J. Hunter, "Plantation in Donegal" in William Nolan, Liam Ronayne and Mairead Dunlevy (Editors), Donegal: History and Society, p. 289. Geography Publications, Dublin, 1995 (reprinted 2002).
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- ^ Martina O'Donnell, "The Estate System of Landholding in County Donegal" in Jim MacLaughlin and Seán Beattie (Editors), An Historical, Environmental and Cultural Atlas of County Donegal, pp. 241-242. Cork University Press, Cork, 2013.
- ^ Maguire 2002, pp. 25, 70–71.
- ^ Maguire 2003, p. 31.
- ^ The Hon. Mrs. Fionn Morgan, "Donegal and Antrim Link: O'Neill and Chichester" in Seán Beattie (Editor), Donegal Annual - Journal of the County Donegal Historical Society: Number 59 (2007), p. 23. The County Donegal Historical Society, Ballyshannon, 2007.
- ^ Martina O'Donnell, "The Estate System of Landholding in County Donegal" in Jim MacLaughlin and Seán Beattie (Editors), An Historical, Environmental and Cultural Atlas of County Donegal, p. 239. Cork University Press, Cork, 2013.
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- ^ Philip Robinson, Irish Historic Towns Atlas Number 2: Carrickfergus, pp. 4-5. Royal Irish Academy, Dublin, 1986.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "History of Belfast Castle". www.belfastcastle.co.uk. Archived from the original on 5 December 2019. Retrieved 5 December 2019.
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References
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- Bardon, Jonathan (2012). The Plantation of Ulster. Dublin: Gill Books. ISBN 978-0-7171-5447-0.
- Brett, Charles (1985). Buildings of Belfast, 1700-1914. Belfast: Friar's Bush Press. ISBN 978-0-946872-02-2.
- Cannadine, David (2005). The Decline and Fall of the British Aristocracy. London: Penguin Books. ISBN 978-0-14-102313-7.
- Dean, J. A. K. (1994). The Gate Lodges of Ulster: A Gazetteer. Belfast: Ulster Architectural Heritage Society. ISBN 978-0-900457-46-3.
- Gillespie, Raymond; Royle, Stephen A. (2003). Irish Historic Towns Atlas No. 12: Belfast - Part I, to 1840. Dublin: Royal Irish Academy. ISBN 978-0-9543855-0-7.
- Maguire, W. A. (2002). Living like a Lord: The Second Marquis of Donegall, 1769-1844. Belfast: Ulster Historical Foundation. ISBN 1-903688-26-4.
- Maguire, W. A. (2003). "Lords and Landlords: The Donegall Family". In Beckett, J. C. (ed.). Belfast: The Making of the City. Belfast: Lagan Books. ISBN 978-0-86281-877-7.
- Royle, Stephen A. (2007). Irish Historic Towns Atlas No. 17: Belfast - Part II, 1840 to 1900. Dublin: Royal Irish Academy. ISBN 978-1-904890-26-3.